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Software · head to head

Heroku vs Together AI

Heroku logo

Heroku

Software

Cloud Application Platform

From
$7/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Together AI logo

Together AI

Software

Open-source AI at scale

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Together AI has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Heroku there is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month; Together AI fine tuning carries a minimum charge of $4.00 per job regardless of dataset size
  • They diverge on capability: Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Together AI covers Open-source models.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Heroku and Together AI actually diverge.

Attributes where Heroku and Together AI differ
AttributeHerokuTogether AI
Starting price$7/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionusage-based
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Api, WorkersApi, Cloud
Founded20072022

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Heroku

  • Git-based deployment
  • Buildpacks
  • Dynos (containers)
  • Add-ons marketplace
  • Postgres database
  • Environment variables
  • Logging
  • API

Only in Together AI

  • Open-source models
  • Fine-tuning
  • Fast inference
  • Embeddings
  • REST API
  • Python SDK
  • OpenAI compatible
  • Cloud support

Both cover

  • Api support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Heroku

  • Deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administrationnot Together AI
  • Running managed Postgres, Redis and Kafka as attached data servicesnot Together AI
  • Isolated production environments in a Private Space for regulated workloadsnot Together AI

Together AI

  • Serverless inference against open source chat, vision, embedding, image and video modelsnot Heroku
  • Renting dedicated single tenant H100, H200 or B200 GPU clusters by the hournot Heroku
  • Fine tuning open weight models on a per token basisnot Heroku

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Heroku

  • There is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month
  • Eco dynos sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity, are restricted to personal accounts and allow only 2 process types
  • Free SSL and 10 process types start at the Basic dyno at $7 per month
  • Private and Shield dyno types require a Private Space, which is billed on top of the dynos
  • Private Space dynos start at $250 per month for Private-M and $500 per month for Private-L
  • Dyno prices are per dyno per month, so an app with several process types multiplies the bill

Together AI

  • Fine tuning carries a minimum charge of $4.00 per job regardless of dataset size
  • Reserved GPU commitments beyond 180 days are priced by contacting sales with no published rate
  • Volume and enterprise discounts are quote only with no published threshold
  • Reserved dedicated inference pricing is contact sales while only on demand rates of $5.49 to $8.99 per GPU hour are published

Pricing, plan by plan

Heroku

$7/month
  • Hobby$7/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Shared CPU
    • 1 web dyno
  • Standard$50/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Dedicated CPU
    • Automatic scaling

Together AI

Free
  • FreeFree
    • $5 credits
    • API access
  • Pay-per-use$0.2/per-million-tokens
    • All models
    • Fine-tuning

Which should you pick?

Choose Heroku if

  • You need git-based deployment.
  • You work on Web, Api, Workers.
  • You also want buildpacks.
Heroku review

Choose Together AI if

  • You need open-source models.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Api, Cloud.
  • You also want fine-tuning.
Together AI review

Questions people ask

Is Heroku or Together AI better?
Neither clearly leads. Heroku starts at $7/month and Together AI at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Heroku or Together AI?
Together AI has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $7/month for Heroku and Free for Together AI.
Does Heroku or Together AI run on more platforms?
Heroku runs on Web, Api, Workers. Together AI runs on Api, Cloud.
Can I use Together AI for free?
Yes. Together AI has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heroku starts at $7/month.
What is Heroku best used for?
Heroku is most often used for deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration, running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services, isolated production environments in a private space for regulated workloads. Of those, deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration and running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services are not what Together AI is typically brought in for.
What can Heroku do that Together AI cannot?
Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Buildpacks, Dynos (containers), Add-ons marketplace. Together AI covers Open-source models, Fine-tuning, Fast inference, Embeddings. Both handle Api support.
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